Center for the Study of New Orleans hosts evening of jazz and history Thursday

The Center for the Study of New Orleans will host its first official event Thursday, "An Evening of Jazz and History." The event features readings by acclaimed author Jason Berry and musical performances by Dr. Michael White and John Boutté.

The free event will take place Sept. 3, 7:30 p.m. in Monroe Hall’s Nunemaker Auditorium on Loyola’s main campus.

During An Evening of Jazz and History, Berry will read from his book, “Up from the Cradle of Jazz.” The readings will be accompanied by band performances led by White, a Xavier University professor of music, featuring renowned New Orleans vocalist John Boutté.

The Center for the Study of New Orleans is housed within Loyola’s College of Social Sciences and is headed by School of Mass Communication professor Leslie Parr, Ph.D. It is a cross-disciplinary resource hub that promotes research and reflection on the history, politics, culture and environment of New Orleans.

The center is holding four public events during the 2009-10 academic year. The programs explore New Orleans’ unique culture by drawing on the expertise of nationally known New Orleans scholars.

The center also plans to offer a Loyola minor in the study of New Orleans whereby students complete courses across the Loyola curriculum that support the CSNO’s mission.

“We think the concept of this center with its focus on a single city is unique. New Orleans is one of the few cities in the world that can sustain such intense study,” said Parr.

The plan, too, is for Loyola to be able to do something meaningful for New Orleans, Parr continued. “This center will not only serve the needs of our students, it will be of great value to the community. It’s important to us to highlight the importance of New Orleans as the city continues its recovery.”

The idea for the center was born as Loyola professors talked informally about the rich array of possibilities New Orleans offers for scholarly investigation. “I don’t know if we got the idea for the minor or for the programming first, but it all just jelled,” Parr said. “This center came together with the help of so many people. We have an impressive steering committee that represents disciplines throughout the university. They have put in many hours of planning for these events.”

All 2009-10 events will take place in Nunemaker Auditorium on Loyola’s main campus. Events scheduled include:

Sept. 3, 7:30 p.m. An Evening of Jazz and History, readings by renowned “Up from the Cradle of Jazz” author Jason Berry, accompanied by performances with a band led by Dr. Michael White, featuring vocalist John Boutté.

Oct. 21, 7 p.m. What is New Orleans?, a discussion on the people, culture and geography of New Orleans, featuring Susan Saulny, New Orleans native and writer for The New York Times, Larry Powell, professor of history at Tulane University, and Richard Campanella, geographer and author of “Bienville’s Dilemma: A Historical Geography of New Orleans.” Loyola professor John Biguenet will moderate the panel.

Jan. 20, 7 p.m. New Orleans in the '60s: A Time of Change, a panel discussion on the turbulent era of segregation, integration and emerging identity groups, featuring Alecia Long, a history professor at Louisiana State University and author of “The Great Southern Babylon: Sex, Race, and Respectability in New Orleans, 1865-1920,” Rafael Cassimere, University of New Orleans history professor, emeritus, and Kent Germany, who teaches history at University of South Carolina. Loyola sociology professor Anthony Ladd will moderate.

March 23, 7:30 p.m. Taken Against Their Will: Kidnappers, Detectives and Slaves. Historians Mike Ross, University of Maryland, and Adam Rothman, Georgetown University, will weave a tale of intrigue as they discuss two infamous 19th century Louisiana kidnapping cases. Loyola history professor Mark Fernandez will moderate.

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